A.W.N. PUGIN (1812-1852) (ATTRIBUTED DESIGNER), POSSIBLY FOR GILLOWS GROUP OF SIX SIDE CHAIRS, CIRCA 1860 oak, with close-nailed leather upholstery, the top rail carvings representing fruiting vines; flowering foliage; thistles; convolvulus; ivy; flowering currants (50cm wide, 88.5cm high, 49cm deep) Qty: (6) Provenance: Temple Three Paper Buildings, London Footnote: Note: The Paper Buildings comprise a set of barrister’s chambers situated within the Inner Temple area in London. Initially built in 1609, the name refers to the construction materials used in the buildings, a combination of timer, lath and plaster, known as ‘paperwork’. In 1819 Robert Smirke was surveyor of the buildings; his only work in London that was executed in the Gothic Revival style, notable rooms include the Library and the Great Hall. However, the buildings’ history was plagued by a number of fires which destroyed large portions of Smirke’s work. The Library and Great Hall were rebuilt by Smirke’s brother Sydney in 1870, very much in the Gothic aesthetic; today the paper buildings resemble a far more modern aesthetic, with elements of neo-classical architecture after further renovations in the 1950s. The present set of six chairs, originally with green leather upholstery, certainly bear similarities with much of the seating produced for the Palace of Westminster, namely the chamfered square legs with recessed H-stretchers, completed in oak. The chairs each bear a distinct carving along the top rail and while Pugin’s designs were generally dominated by plain and solid construction, designs for the Palace of Westminster often featured more elaborate embellishments and intricately carved details. In 2006, a pair of X-frame side chairs, attributed to Pugin for the Palace of Westminster, feature similar carvings of oak leaves and acorns; a dining chair for the Speaker’s House, on display in The Metropolitan Museum in New York, also displays similarly carved flowering foliage (accession 2015.638). A chair matching the design of the present lot, carved with holly on the top rail with original green leather upholstery, still resides at the Three Paper Buildings Barristers in London today.